TO M. A. ULYANOVA

Source: PSS vol. 55

AND A. I. ULYANOVA-ELIZAROVA

16/VIII.

I received a letter from Anyuta dated 30.VII this week, dear mama. I received it on Monday, 10.VIII, in Minusinsk, where I went to have my teeth treated[98]. I was very surprised to receive this letter, which came, as it turned out, by express train. However, owing to the transfer of letters from this express train (going to Tomsk) to the ordinary train, there is a loss of time: on Tuesday, 11.VIII, I received a newspaper from Moscow dated 29.VII by ordinary train, while the letter by express train was dated 30.VII—so it was scarcely any faster.

From here I cannot send by express train, since for that I would need to have acquaintances in Obi[99] and send the letter there for placing in the express train's mailbox.

* This refers to M. G. Hopfengautz. Editor.

However, make another attempt at sending by express train: we'll see when the letter arrives.

Today I am sending to St. Petersburg the Webb translation. I have written asking them to send the honorarium to you: if the publisher does not know your address, inform him of it for this purpose.

There could already be news about my collection of articles, but there isn't, and Nadezhda and I are beginning to think it's a fiasco...

Manyasha, in my opinion, is wavering without reason. It would be useful for her to live and study abroad in one of the capitals, and Belgium in particular would be especially convenient for her studies. In what specialty does she wish to attend lectures?

So I was not wrong in postponing my submission of the declaration about the "Questions": it turned out that they were not lost, though they were so delayed that sending them lost all meaning.

Your V. U.

To Anyuta

I am sending you, Anyuta, with this mail a registered parcel containing Negri, Tempeste, and the catalog which you asked for. The address is the same as in this letter. Let me know when you receive it.

Along with your letter I received news from Arkhangelsk that M. G. also shot herself (18.VII), having received on 16.VII news of N. E.'s death. This is a terribly tragic story! And the vile slanders of some scoundrel Yukhhotsky (a "political" exile in Verkholensky) played one of the principal roles in this finale. N. E. was terribly struck by this and crushed by it. Because of this he decided not to take help from anyone and endured terrible hardships.

They say that 2–3 days before his death he received a letter repeating these slanders. The devil knows what it all is! The worst thing in exile is these "exile intrigues," but I never thought they could reach such proportions! The slanderer had long been openly and firmly condemned by all the comrades, and I in no way thought that N. E. (who had some experience with exile intrigues) would take all this so terribly to heart.